Canaan: Worlds Apart
by TheForgottenPen
Summary: Fate has done it again, as the two are reunited once more. Only this time in Maria's homeland of Japan. However, as the world plunge into conflict, will they manage to keep their worlds together?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Note that I do not take credit for the characters, or setting, or yadda. As they are the rightful intellectual property of the glorious people at TYPE MOON (god, I love you guys) and Sentai Films production. This is a work of fiction from a fan.

It was a lethargic Saturday morning in a certain gray street of an unknown city; the streets could be described as un-lively at best, the sun was not fully present in the sky and most people still lie on their beds sleeping, or trying to get a couple more hours of rest before heading to work. Well, except for a certain Middle Eastern mercenary.

"You have a job."

The mercenary couldn't help but let out an amused smirk. "You just don't learn, do you?" she said while disassembling her Berretta Px4, making sure to keep the phone pressed to her ear.

"I could say the same thing about you. And your target this time isn't an easy one"

She was amused, for her to be saying that after working together for quite a while… "And the target is..?"

The person on the other line let out a grin. "A woman with one arm…"

"….." The mercenary paused, understanding the request. The woman on the other line knew she had her hooked.

"Pack your things, we're going to Japan. I'll fill you in on the details once we get to the airport"

"…Roger" she hung up the phone. '_So she's still alive huh? Heh, I wonder what she's up to now.'_ Her thoughts drift off into the location of the "target", as she glared up at the brightening sky with a melancholic smile.

'_Japan huh...?' _She could practically feel it right now; the glowing color of gold emanating. Her smile deepened as her inner thoughts drifted to…

'_Maria…'_

Just then, the sun started shine upon the once gray and colorless city.

* * *

"Canaan!"

Her eyes shot open as she looked at her arm stretching upwards, as if they were trying to reach something far in the distance, only to have it continuing to slip away. Her arms slowly descended back to her bed only to have it grab a nearby pillow and cover her face with it.

'_Another restless night…'_

Lately she hasn't been getting enough sleep at night, often causing her to dose off during the day at work, much to Minoru's misfortune. The reason for her restless nights was due to her reoccurring dreams. Dreams of her and…_Canaan…_ slowly drift apart due to different scenarios. The most recent one was with her and Canaan on a date having fun _(what normal girls should do)_ then have her leaning towards her face, slowly inching towards her blushing face.

Once in close proximity, the Middle Eastern girl whispered "_we can never return to how we were."_

They're worlds then started to split apart, with her running towards the darker girl, her friend, her…light, but to no avail. She choked back a sob.

'_I thought I'm getting better at this…'_ She then released her grip on the pillow as she looked up at her apartment ceiling. _'It's been two years. I wonder where she is…' _She slowly looked around her room only to realize it's still pretty dark. She glanced at her clock. She groaned. "Too early…" she could probably clock in a couple more hours of sleep. _'If I'm lucky…' _She then saw the white/ washed out red kitty plushie that Canaan gave her at Shanghai. Her face broke out into a melancholic smile as she grabbed the kitty doll. As she cuddled it, a single tear slowly descended down her face.

'_Canaan…I miss you so much'_

* * *

Hello potential readers out there! I just want to thank you guys if you managed to read this far. I probably should have stated this at the start, but I am totally new at this sort of thing. I've never written an actual Fanfiction before, so…I don't know. I loved this show, but the only thing wrong with it is that it is too short for its own good. There are still multiple plot holes to be filled in, It only just brushed the potential showings of special powers from borners (if I counted it right, there were only three showings of Borners with powers, and only one of them had an actual showing..). Not only that, but did anyone else feel like the ending was too…bittersweet? I mean this is basically my reaction:

Minoru: "You can still be close with her…"

Me: Please don't say in her heart, please don't day in her heart, please don-

Minoru: "Be close to her in your hearts"

Me: Dammit!

And I know this chapter might be short, but think of it as an introduction to the story. One last note before the author's note becomes longer than the actual story. When I said that the show still has plot holes, that is what prompted me to write this. Because it feels like I have a lot of freedom to make it seem Canon (lol Canaan) however I never played 428 before, so I'm still treading on thin Ice here.

So please leave some feedback. Tell me if I'm doing good so far, or if you spot some errors. Till next time.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Do I have to do this every chapter?*Sigh I do not claim ownership of Canaan, as they are the property of PA works, Sentai Films, and TYPE MOON. Please do not sue.

* * *

The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, children were playing around as adults conversed with one another in the airport. And Yuri Natsume just didn't care. She was annoyed, frustrated, and quickly losing her patience. _What is taking her so long? She's never been late before…Why now?! We finally tracked that woman down after two years! Countless resources went into surveillance, many gambles were made with in-state and international politics, many leads eventually were revealed to be false, and I swear, if I have to invest more time with working with that…that man, I'm gonn-_

"Good morning Yuri-san!" A cheerful salutation was pierced through the air, interrupting the Intelligence officer's thoughts.

She turned towards the familiar voice.

"Your late-" She stuttered at the sight before her. Her hired gun, Canaan, was there smiling cheerfully with that stupid sugar stick in her mouth. She was carrying luggage of clothes, bags of usual armaments, and…shopping bags?

"Uh…um…"

Canaan's brow rose, "Something wrong?"

The major re-composed herself. "Don't 'something wrong' me! Where were you, what took you so long?!"

The mercenary gave a confused look. "You told me to pack up my things..."

"For two hours and-"she glanced at her watch, "forty seven minutes?!"

Canaan smiled sheepishly while rubbing the back of her head. "Well... I may have taken a detour and done a little shopping for…souvenirs" Her smile increased as she thought about the little gift she bought. _I hope she'll like it…_

Yuri's left eye was twitching._ Does she think that we're going on vacation?_ She sighed as she rubbed her temples. For a while, she was beginning to think that her hired gun was intercepted by hostile forces. Except her worries were for naught, as it seemed that she was late because she was doing a little window shopping. _Right before the mission too. _She fixed her glasses and regained some of her composure.

"I had thought you would be a little more…focused, considering what we are dealing with here."

"What makes you think that?"

It was now Yuri's turn to give a confused glance at the Middle Eastern mercenary. She was genuinely surprised at the younger girl's remark. She had seen from first-hand experience the lengths that this girl would go through to rush into battle with the former leader of the Snakes.

"Don't you have some things to settle with the target?"

Canaan just smiled. "No, it would be good to see what she's up to, but nothing worth stressing about." She already tamed her emotions, and already conquered the ghost of her past. The sense of rivalry was still there, but the bitter hatred for the other girl has long dissipated. Siam can finally rest knowing one of his protégés had finally learned how to truly be invincible.

The older woman sighed for the umpteenth time. "Honestly, I don't think I will ever figure you out." She brushed the whole conversation off as she started walking to her personal jet. "Come, we're late already and we have much to discuss on the ride there."

Canaan just shrugged and silently followed the older woman to their plane.

* * *

En-route to Shibuya Airport

"You're not accompanying me on this mission?"

Canaan asked as both of them were flying to Tokyo. The Jet was owned by Yuri Natsume, so she wouldn't have to worry about others overhearing their conversation, nor worry about pesky surveillances.

"That's right; frankly the whole "Alphard" operation is now out of my jurisdiction. The lead was sent to me because I'm the closest thing to contacting you personally."

Canaan raised her brow at the information she is hearing. "So, you're just going to drop me off in japan, and just leave me to find her all by myself?" she asked in confusion.

Yuri just sighed upon hearing this question. "Not quite, we have an informant in the premises already. In fact, your first priority is to get into contact with him."

The younger girl didn't hide her uncertainty, as Yuri noticed the look she gave.

"Don't worry; he will help you along the way throughout the mission, collecting whatever Intel comes along his path. We already suspect that the target is somewhere close in the Shibuya region. And if there is one good thing I will say about him, is that he does his job well."

Canaan noticed the negative edge in the woman's voice. She grinned slightly, "Friend of yours?" she asked jokingly.

"I'm sad to even be acquainted with him…"

Canaan laughed slightly. He must be one interesting person if he managed to break through her stoic façade. She would not pry though, and the older woman was grateful for that.

"How will I locate him?"

"He will be somewhere around this designated apartment." She then handed the mercenary a slip of paper with the address _Sakuragaoka Appt.,Shibuya, Tokyo _. "This is where you're going to be staying during the job, any other questions?"

"Hmm… no, I think I have everything that I need for now." She said as she gazed out of the plane window.

_Well, that was less stressful then I thought that would be._ Yuri thought as she drifted to sleep. It was going to be a while till they reach Tokyo.

The younger girl on the other hand, had other things on her mind that did not permit sleep. Now that she heard the details about her mission, and the excitement died down a little, she now started to hesitate about her meeting with her long-time friend._ I shouldn't forget that…our worlds are still apart. _She clenched her armrest, deeply in conflict with herself. _But oh, do I miss you…_

_Maria…_

* * *

_Maria…._

_Mariaa…._

"OOSAWA MARIA!"

She felt a sharp thud on her forehead. Groaning a little, she pouted. "Mino-san, that hurts!"

"That was the second time you fell asleep in a span of an hour!" The reporter snapped back, frustration apparent on his face.

_You didn't have to flick my forehead…_ She thought as she rubbed the sore spot on her forehead.

Minoru sighed as he shook his head. _She used to be such an energetic girl. Ever since two years ago, she cannot stay awake for barely an hour._ "I'm guessing you missed everything I said?"

Maria looked at him with a sense of guilt in her eyes. "Sorry"

The reporter sighed again, annoyed by the fact that he spent the last half an hour informing a sleeping person. He took a deep breath.

"Ok, let's recap and start at the very beginning…"

After the incident during the Anti-Terrorist Meeting between all the representing figure heads, and prior to that, the Shibuya Incident, the political world is now in total paranoia. In a span of four years, the new threat of terrorism has launched multiple major attacks on the world, and single handedly humiliated the United Nations in one surprise attack in Shanghai. People are now starting to fear about another potential attack by terrorists. As a result, the United States has launched a massive Anti-Terrorist-Prevention-Act on all the governing bodies. With this act, American military bases are now on almost all the UN's representing countries. Mandatory surveillance cameras are now present spanning from the streets of London, to the buildings of Paris, to the traffic lights of Tokyo. America has now become massively involved with the other foreign politics. Most of it is through collaboration between the foreign governments, some were mandates. While this did cause uproar on some of the populations, stating that this act violates the sovereignty of the foreign bodies, the UN is in full support of this act. And while Japan had indeed risen up the ranks in the political arena, they had no real special treatments. Now, occasional US military convoys roam the streets of Shibuya from time to time. However, some of the surveillance cameras around the area appeared to be broken some had gunshots present. According to the rumors anyways, as the police quickly replaced them and told the public that it's just simple malfunctioning equipment.

"However!" the reporter exclaimed excitedly, "I smell a big scoop lying somewhere, and I-" He stopped his excited rantings to see that the young photographer has fallen asleep on him again.

"OSAWAA!"

She didn't care however, nor did the constant screams affect the peaceful expression on her face as she snoozed. That's right; she didn't care, because she is having a dream about her light.

_Canaan…_

* * *

Update: Alright, just a quick update to this chapter. Some of you who are reading this (really, thank you for reading this, even if you don't review, watching the traffic for this little thing rise a smidge is heart-warming) might be wondering why I made Canaan so chillax about Alphard. Some might consider this OOC. But I got reasons people, reasons. First, If not foremost, the whole cryptic conflict about her "ghost of her past" or whatever seemed to be resolved quite nicely on episode 13..well for Canaan at least. And I would just hate it to throw all that progression from the show out the window. The other thing is that, I'm just working with what they are giving me. In the little epilogue, we didn't see Canaan grimacing at the mention of Alphard. Instead, we see her calm and totally in control of her emotions when it comes to her. Anyways, hope to have some reviews and feedback!


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own anything! See that picture on the top left? It's from Danbooru…

* * *

"Ah, here it is"

After leaving the airport, Canaan spent the last hour or two locating the _Sakuragaoka_ apartment. It took her a while, but she finally found it. Of course, she could've just used her special synesthesia ability, as that probably could've shaved off an hour of looking. However, she didn't to rely too much on her special senses. _Do not rely too much on your special senses; otherwise you might just miss the truth_. The apartment was a relatively large building; multiple spanning rooms with balconies, around eight stories tall, around six hundred and thirty five square feet in size. It was really nice, and gave a nice warm sense of belonging for some reason. But enough with that, time for business.

_He should be around here somewhere…_

After a couple of glances around the area, she soon found one individual leaning on the side of the apartment building in the shadows. Upon closer inspection; the man was wearing a suit with a white shirt underneath a long black coat, wearing a black tie around his neck, attired with black slacks, tapping his black suede shoes, and sporting a dark fedora to match his attire. He appears to be reading a document folder, but it is hard to tell, since his eyes seemed to be closed. _This must be the person._

She cleared her throat. "Excuse me"

He tore his gaze of the document to her direction. His eyes still remained closed, but tilted his head. "Oh, hello. Can I help you?"

"Um, I'm the pers-"

"Ah! That's right! Canaan right? The legendary spokesperson of Iron Strife that I've heard so much about?" The man quickly interrupted. A wide smile quickly replaced his confused look. The mercenary started to rub the back of her head, trying to come up with the right words to reply to the praise a second ago. The man continued.

"You must excuse me, a lot of people came over to ask if I was lost. Nice people around here, but it can get irritating." He then started to frown as he tilted his hat up a little. "I have been waiting for quite a while now, you know…"

Guilt quickly flared up in the Middle Eastern mercenary._ That's right, I was running late to buy some things for Maria, and also spent the last couple of hours looking for a building that I could've easily found in a span of half an hour. Who knows how long he waited…_

He saw the guilt on her face. "Oh! I didn't mean to imply guilt ma'am! I mean, you probably had something very important come up that you needed to quickly see to, must be pretty important to have to leave an important informant waiting." He quickly assured her in an almost mockingly polite manner.

That assurance only managed to increase her guilt however, as her cheeks started to gather up heat._ Well…not exactly. _Perhaps she really should start to take this case more seriously.

The man, seeming to sense the girl's discomfort, gazed at her in amusement. "Apparently not, judging from your expression. Well, I won't pry. Let's get started now shall we?" The man suddenly paused. "Oh goodness, how rude of me, I should probably introduce myself first." He removed his hat and held it to his chest as he bowed low, showing his black hair. "I'm Tenmaru, captain of the intelligence division of the United-States-Anti-Terrorism-Strike-Force(USATSF). From now on, I'll be working with you closely on apprehending the former leader of the terrorist organization called Snakes. One Alphard Alshua. If I'm not mistaken, you've been quite affiliated with the girl before, were you not?"

Canaan's face steeled up, turning serious. "Yes"

"Splendid!" the captain exclaimed jovially. "That could work well in our favor. The sooner we bring her to justice, the sooner we can bring order and security to the world! For as long as that dangerous terrorist live, our system of Democracy will be in jeopardy. That is why, as the agents of love and peace, we must be quick in our apprehension, and resolute in our judgment!" He exclaimed out in an overly dramatic manner, extending his arms wide for added emphasis. Only to shrug later, "Well, at least that's what the politicians say…"

Canaan was not impressed. But now that the topic has been brought up… "If you don't mind me asking, what's going to happen to her when she's caught?"

The intelligence officer raised his brow in confusion, showing just a little bit of his eyes. "You, a hired gun, the Iron Strife's spokesperson, is asking that? That's like a Veterinarian asking what sound a dog makes. The answer should be obvious."

The mercenary cringed. She remembered what she told Alphard while holding on to her that day on the train. _So as a person who's alive, I order you not to die!_ The very nature of this mission seems contradictory to the statement. "But, we don't have to kill her right?" she asked, hoping for one of the few answers she had in mind.

"Well, let's see here…" the captain said while digging into his coat pocket, and got out a small, brown leather book. "Our mission; is to 'eliminate the terrorist threat now known as Alphard Alshua, with whatever means.' That's awfully vague, isn't it? They seem to be giving us a lot of freedom on this case. While capturing her alive isn't out of the question, it's just that no one is stupid enough to try do so, and the higher ups know it. Haha, look, they even said 'Lethal force is highly recommended on sight.'" He placed his book back into his coat pocket. "So you tell me, since you know her a lot longer than I have, would she be willing to just turn up, hands-oops I mean hand, up and surrender just like that?" He asked, giving her his foxlike smile.

"Tsk"_ he has a point._ Canaan's face scrunched up in a thoughtful, troubled look as she internally debated herself again. Tenmaru mustered up a comforting smile and touched her shoulder in a friendly gesture. "Let's just worry about apprehending her, we'll figure out what to do with her after we caught her. Ok?" he said, trying to sound sincere.

Canaan drew in a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. "Ok…"

The man withdrew his arm to fix the position of his hat, looking up at the sunny sky of Shibuya Japan. "Well, I'll tell you one thing, today is beautiful. Alright, now that you have been briefed, go ahead and settle down in your room. Do not worry, your room is already paid and accounted for. Your welcome" he said sardonically, while handing her the keys.

"What do I do afterwards?" Canaan asked. Hoping to make up for lost time.

"Well…today is nice outside, and Shibuya is a very pretty city, I should know, I've been waiting here for quite a while." Canaan scoffed. _Ok I get it… _"What was I saying, oh yeah, it's a very nice place, so why don't you go exploring?"

"Huh?" Canaan was confused. She was expecting orders, but this seemed like an offer for-

"Sightseeing" Tenmaru quickly said. "Or maybe you have someone you have to meet up with." He finished, opening his eyes a little. _How does he..?_ "But what about the mission?" Canaan asked. She didn't get it. First she was getting scolded for holding up the progress of the mission (sarcastically at least), and now she is free to view the city as she pleases?

"What about it? I'm the intelligence officer here, and that's what I plan on doing, gathering intelligence. It's what I do. You are the hired gun, you shoot the target down. I'm the spy, I tell you where. Brawn and brains, and all that. It's just common protocol." He explained.

Canaan wasn't used to this. Usually she does both the snooping and the shooting. Like a hunter.

"Not really used to that, aren't ya?" Tenmaru commented. He shrugged, "Well, I can't blame you, I doubt bounty hunters follow US military protocol. To be honest, I'm not used to this either. We never needed a mercenary before. You just being here just shows how desperate we are. Well whatever. Who knows? We might make a pretty potent team" He finished with a snake-like grin.

Canaan just nodded. "Well then, what room am I in?"

"Room 427, have fun~" He said while vanishing into the shadows of the alley way.

* * *

_Stupid Mino-san, making me do this. What exactly does he think a photographer do anyway? _Maria thought while doing paperwork set by Minoru, mostly as punishment. _I_ _shouldn't be_ _stuck in an office, doing HIS paperwork, and reading some articles about whatever. I should be taking pictures, at least that keeps me awake…_…!

She almost fell asleep, but she stopped herself. She just wanted to get the papers and articles done and go home. _Not quite_. Ok, what she really wanted to do was to go to the gallery again. Her gallery. A single day hadn't passed after the shanghai incident where she didn't stop by that place at least once. A sort of homage to her dearly missed friend. No, it was more of a ritual now that she thought of it. The place was no longer crowded like it was back when it was first made. Sure some tourists or art enthusiasts went in, and some where enticed by the tale of the girl. But it didn't matter. Just seeing the photos of her around her, as if the actual person is there, made her days better, brighter, enough to get through her days. Minoru always went on about the gifts of coffee and caffeine. _I got my own stimulant._

She tried to read some of the articles Minoru told her about. Something about the American military…and guns…and politics…and then her eye lids started to get extremely heavy. _A couple minutes won't hurt._

* * *

Maria whined as she crossed through the streets of Shibuya. _A couple of minutes, it was supposed to be a couple of minutes! _She pounded her head as a form of self-punishment for her oversleeping at work. Now it was late, and the gallery would be closing soon. _NO! I want to see it._ Flashbacks of her recent dreams about Canaan surfaced, spurring her feet like engine for a car. _Let me see it. _A dream about Canaan returning to her. A dream of her and Canaan hugging, laughing, together. It was one of the most realistic dreams she had recently. "_I'll always be with you" Canaan said, pointing towards Maria's chest, "In your heart"._ As soon as she woke up, she was instantly disappointed to see that she was still in the office. _A lie, A Lie!_ She wanted to relive that experience; she wanted to feel her presence, even if it was just from pictures.

She slowed to a stop, sighing in relief. The lights were still on, but no one seemed to be inside. Well, almost no one. There was one individual in a dark green jacket, boots, and had a brownish green hat on, looking at the portraits of Canaan and Alphard. The person's back was facing her. _Another person interested in her story?_ She thought excitedly while smiling. _It's so good_ _to see people interested in her. Looking up to her, commenting on her bravery. Her adventures don't have to be left unheard._ She walked up to the stranger.

"She really is amazing, isn't she?" she said, making her presence known.

The person inched their head towards her voice, but did not reveal their face. Maria walked up past the person, constantly keeping her eyes on the black and white portrait of Canaan.

"All that fighting, all that bloodshed, all that death, and yet she still seems to shine so brightly without effort." Maria said as she tenderly traced her hand on the Canaan nameplate.

"Even in her dark world filled with hatred and violence, she still seems so radiant." She fully knew she was rambling in front of a stranger, but is silently happy that she has an excuse to say these things that have been bottled up in her mind. Her voice started to shake involuntarily.

"Pure, bright, shining, beautiful Canaan in such a cold and distant world." She tightened her hand at her sides to a fist. "What the world is actually like…." _I wanted to be a photographer to show the truth to people. To see what other people didn't see. A world what other people didn't know about; a world where Canaan is in, where I can stay by her side. _A tear slowly descended down her face.

"You big dummy, you didn't even say goodbye" she said, smiling sadly, to the picture in front of her.

"I'm a big dummy, huh?"

Maria giggled. "Hai! Canaan is such a dum-" Her breath was caught instantly in her throat. Her eyes shot straight open, her pupils dilated. That voice. That voice that seemed to unlock the gates holding back tears, as a cascade instantly poured down her eyes. A voice that instantly made her heart yearn for the owner of that voice. _It couldn't be…_ She thought, hoping to god, to the world, the entire damn universe, that she was wrong. She slowly turned her head towards the stranger behind her.

(Recommended for added affect: Mind as judgement Ballad version (alsonotmine): watch?v=fgYIi6cbZ1o)

The stranger took of her hat, allowing her silver like hair to fall down. She looked at the blonde, dumbstrucked girl in front of her and smiled warmly. "Anything else you would like to tell me?" she asked in a joking manner.

Maria found her voice then.

"CANAAN!"

* * *

Terms

United-States Anti-Terrorism-Strike-Force (USATSF): Specialized groups of US Millitary with their own dedicated Intelligence division, Navy division, Air division, and Spec Ops. Called into action across multiple countries with high risk of terrorism, or places with recent terrorist attacks. Thanks to the United Nations, they have proper jurisdiction within their designated land, and constantly works alongside the foreign government. However, USATSF has more authority over the local police divisions thanks to UN resolutions. Not real, only in story…I hope.

Xxx

UGH, OC's. OC's! Okay, I just want to let this off my chest. OC's are kinda a delicate topic, as they can be used very well. One of my favorite stories (Imperfect Metamorphosis by Takerfoxx) has one prominent OC, and it is used beautifully well. But the problem is that I feel like I'm not at that level of writing where I can be that proficient at using OC's. As some could probably tell straight away, the OC that I made is heavily inspired by the Character _Hazama_ from Arc System's Blazblue series, including his mannerisms too. I know, I know it might be weird. But….*runs out of the room.

Problems that I have with OC's include; Self-Inserts, A new OC protagonist that is more focused on then the actual main characters, Mary and Gary sues (A very slippery example, I know, as Villains I can see as an exception, but not overpowered protagonists *cough *coughsuperman *cough), OC's that are unexplainably more powerful than the main character without adding any value to storytelling. And uh… that's it I think. Watch, I might update this chapter if I come up with more problems. And I'm not gonna be using a lot of music in story, as I feel it's really up to the readers discretion. I mean, I thought this one might really really fit. Well, anyways, what do you guys think? About the OC's topic? And hell, what do you guys think about the story so far? I know it's still short in length. I was hoping for atleast 6000 words a chapter, but 2500 will have to do for now.

EDIT*

Ok I knew, there was one i missed. When OC's are paired up romantically with a main character for the sake of romance. Sorry :/

Till next time.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I am poor, I do not own anything. Anything…

* * *

"Canaan!"

She kept repeating that over and over and over again as they resided on the floor after a surprisingly fierce pounce by the blonde, with Maria on top, clinging to the tan girl's torso. Her eyes won't stop pouring out genuine tears of happiness, no matter how hard she tried, which wasn't that much as she didn't care about how she appeared right now. All that mattered to her right now is-

"Canaan! Canaan! Canaan!" Like a mantra, she kept repeating her name over and over hysterically.

The girl underneath held her chin on top of the blond haired girl's head, as she stared up at the gallery ceiling with a blissful smile, while stroking the golden strands tenderly, comfortingly.

"Maria…" Canaan whispered to her in a soothing tone. _ I missed you so much_.

"Canaan…Canaan!" The blond kept repeating, although she appeared to calm down a little. The tan girl continued to stroke her hair lovingly, as she breathed in the trembling girl's essence. _She smells so nice…_

"Maria…" she continued to calm the girl down, to stop her tears, to stop her trembling. She embraced the blond in a tighter bind.

"Canaan….Canaan…" The girl on top did not stop calling out to her, although now she has calmed down considerably. It was almost in a trance-like manner.

"Maria..?" She looked at the girl, now with her synesthesia activated. The girl's golden color still lingered, although it was dimmer than usual, meaning that _she's fallen asleep,_ Canaan thought as she looked down at the slumbering girl. _She must've been exhausted._ She giggled;_ Maria's too energetic to fall asleep on a dime like this._ She embraced the now sleeping girl, chin on head, arms wrapped around the slender figure_. She looks so beautiful when she's asleep. _She held on to her for another couple of minutes before she decided to bring her back to where she usually lives. _Now where is it?_ She once again activated her synesthesia senses. The background of her vision grayed out, allowing her to see a trail of golden light located at the Sakuragaoka building. _ No way…she is living in the same building?_ She looked at the sleeping figure in her arms in a confused glance. Her perplexed look turned into a warm smile._ What a coincidence. I have to thank Captain Tenmaru for choosing the apartment._ She picked up the blonde with her arms holding up her upper body and legs, and proceeded to exit the building. Soon she reached the roof of a small house, and continued to jump roof to roof in the direction of her apartment building- no, of their apartment building.

* * *

_She's here. She came back…_She felt so at peace right now. She almost could've sworn that she was flying in the arms of her beloved friend. _She came back to me…_ "Canaan…"

Everything is going to be okay now. _Or is it?_ _Huh?_ The girl was confused, why wouldn't it be?

_This isn't really new if you think about. I mean, how many times have you had this dream before?_ The girl's heart began to beat faster in panic.

_A….dream?_ She could've sworn she heard her inner thought's scoffed.

_That's right, a dream. Come on, you didn't really think for a second that she actually came back to you, did you? Need I, (or is it really you), remind you about the last dream you(we?) had? This is pretty much the same thing. _

She didn't want to believe it. She hadn't really thought about it. Her mind was too shocked to think it through. She was so ecstatic about seeing Canaan in front of her. _Her smile, her loving arms stroking my head, her soothing voice_.

_A lie, just like your last dream. A lie, a fantasy, an illusion, a hoax played by your mind. She left you remember? Because you were a burden on her. She didn't want to keep babysitting you. You were a chore to her. That was why she left you back in Shanghai._

Her heart quickened. _No…No, please. Not another dream._ Her subconscious would've sighed if it could right then and there.

_Just…enjoy it while you can. Because once you wake up, like you always do; on your bed, hands outstretched to the ceiling, you're going to have to go to work again. And we wouldn't want to fall asleep on Mino-san again._ Even now, her flying sensation started to dull, and she could feel the fabric of her bed.

"_Canaan…"_

* * *

Canaan quietly opened the window to Maria's apartment complex. However, it was still amazing. _Her room is 428, right next to mine. How lucky am I? I didn't even need to go looking for her._ It almost felt like fate._ Hmph, no such thing. But I'm not complaining. _She thought as she gently laid down the blonde sleeping girl on her bed._ I'm not complaining at all. _Her eyes lingered on to the sleeping figure; she was mesmerized by her beauty, her peaceful expression. _I should probably let her sleep. Good thing my room is just next door._ She began to move from the bed, until she heard a small whimper.

"Canaan…" Maria called out, although her tone was one filled with sorrow and desperation.

"Maria…?" Canaan looked at her. The girl was now squirming around, her peaceful expression contorted into a fear stricken one. Her usually golden radiance now radiated a dark green color. _ A nightmare?_

"Canaan…Don't leave me…Please!" she called out in a hushed yet frantic voice, her arms extending as if to reach out to something.

Canaan quickly came back to her side, "Maria…" _This color…it doesn't feel new. Has she been having nightmares every night? _She held the trembling girls head under her chin and embraced her as she got on the bed. "Don't worry, I'm here." She said softly, stroking the girl's hair. "I'm here"

"Canaan…" she began to calm down, and her beautiful smile returned in a content expression. This time, her night was fully well spent, sleeping in the arms of her beloved light.

* * *

Meanwhile

"Captain, over here!"

It was the dead of night, and he should be sleeping. But, duty calls. Tenmaru sighed as he walked over to the location where the local Shibuya police are located. He silently observed one man carefully bringing down a now-dysfunctional security camera from a building. The group of authority figures gathered around the broken camera.

"Well, well, looks like we have stumbled along another scene." Tenmaru commented whimsically, holding his hat in place with one hand. The camera was shot straight through the lens, losing whatever surveillance it captured. Now it is nothing more than scrap metal in most people's eyes. Not in Tenmaru's. The rest of the men sighed in frustration. "This has been the seventh one in a span of a month!" one of the local police officer said with a sigh. Indeed, this sort of thing has been going on for quite some time. And it was beginning to become quite troublesome to quell down the information too, as more and more people started witnessing more of these broken surveillance cameras. By order of the USATSF, however, all information regarding the broken cameras and security was to be remained classified. It was necessary, as they wanted to keep the recent ransacking of the US military bases a secret from the populace, as it would instill mass hysteria, and worse, less trust in the United States' authority in Japan. It didn't take much detective work to know who was responsible for the recent bombings. _Troublesome little snake…_

"Well, look at the bright side gentleman." Tenmaru started, as all the other officers started to look at him questioningly.

"What? Haven't any of you guys noticed the string of broken cameras? It isn't that hard to see it." He explained as he took out a map of Shibuya district of Tokyo, with markings on designated spots where broken cameras were discovered, with corresponding dates of when it was found.

"Do you guys notice anything?" He continued on, not waiting for an answer, "The string of broken cameras actually reveals to be a trail. Look around last month and a half ago," he said while tracing the spots on the map, "and where did it lead to at the end of the month?" He pointed at the spot where a USATSF military base used to be located, until the most recent bombing. "If my hunch is correct, then this camera should lead the perpetrator to the nearest armed base. I'll try to cut her off from there, although it'll be difficult. Shibuya is still a fairly large region." Tenmaru explained.

One of the officers offered their help. "Do you need us to maintain more security around the base, sir?"

Tenmaru waved him off. "You just worry about your little broken cameras. Let me worry about the big boy stuff. Local Japanese police forces should not interfere with United States' military property." The captain said, almost mockingly.

One of the men scoffed at the comment. "Well, I'm off. Quickly replace the camera before someone sees it, we want to keep this hush-hush, you know?" He finished off, walking away from the group of Shibuyan police officers. However, across the street in the shadows, someone was watching them, hoping to get a big scoop from the conversation.

_American bases destroyed? String of broken cameras? Perpetrator? _His face brightened up, as his eyes practically turned into light bulbs. _I SMELL A SCOOP._

While Captain Tenmaru was walking down the supposed empty sidewalk, Minoru was quietly shadowing him, hiding behind buildings and alleys ways. The captain took a glance of the area around him, so Minoru quickly ducked from the Captain's sight behind the nearest building. _This guy seems to know what's going on. If I can keep on tailing him, then I shoul-_

"Um…"

Bug eyed from the interruption of his inner planning, he spun around towards the sound of the voice. Only to see the captain standing there slouched, with a hand rubbing the back of his neck.

"Can I help you?" He asked in a hushed yet casual voice.

A shrill scream echoed through the city night.

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

* * *

*RIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII NG

Now that was a sound she hadn't heard in a long time. For the first time in years, the clock managed to beat her in waking up first. She let out a restful *_Yawwwn_

Losing never felt so good before. That was the best night she had in a long time. And it wasn't a coincidence that she had one of the best dreams in a long time as well. There was a slight pang in her heart as she realized it was only a dream. Her eyes were still closed, as she tried to stretch her body. She tried, but then she noticed that something had wrapped itself around her. She gasped and quickly opened her eyes. When she did, she saw one of the most beautiful, and familiar, pair of ruby eyes gazing down at her.

"Good morning, Maria" the "something" said with a smile.

Without thinking, she jumped at the girl, holding her down on the bed by the shoulders as she looked down with desperate, inspecting eyes. _Is this still a dream? _

"This is real, right? You're really here, right now, underneath me, right?" She asked the 'illusionary' girl, with a pleading tone. "You really came back to me, right?" she asked again, now with hints of tears in her eyes.

The girl underneath her sighed, with her hands slowly reaching up to caress the blonde's face.

"You can see me, right? You can hear me, right?" She then slowly pulled the blushing Maria closer to her face, so that their foreheads were touching.

"You can feel me, right?" she wiped a few tears away with her thumbs. "See? I'm really here." She assured her in a smooth and soothing voice.

"Canaan…" she let herself be pulled into the other girl. _It's real, it's really real. She came back…_

Canaan laid there; with her forehead touching Maria's, eyes closed, and relaxed as she was encompassed by Maria's warmth. Sadly, it was short-lived.

"You big….DUMMY!(BAKAA!)

…As a pillow quickly collided with her face.

* * *

She suddenly soon found herself shielding her face from the pillow-front onslaught by the girl on top of her.

"Dummy! (Baka!), Dummy! (Baka!), you big Dummy! (Baka!)" she cried hysterically as she swung with all her might, pillow in hand, onto the helpless girl underneath. She should be happy, she really should be. But no, now she knows this is real. She won't have any regrets waking up from a dream of her being angry with Canaan. Because now she knows this isn't a dream. She now had a clear mind, and she was going to give a piece of it to Canaan.

"How could you…*hic* How could you just….*hic* You Dummy! (BAKA)"

At least, that's what she thought in her mind. In actuality, she couldn't form a coherent sentence longer than three words. She was crying so hard, she had hiccups. The girl under assault was confused at her words. _Did I do something wrong? Should I have asked before going into her room? I technically did break in. _All her thoughts went rummaging over possibilities on what could make Maria so mad at her.

"Maria...?"

"HOW COULD YOU JUST LEAVE ME LIKE THAT?" She finally found her words. "How could you…without even saying good bye?" She said a lot softer this time, with tears running down her face.

The little gerbil in Canaan's head then realized that it was running on the wrong wheel, and then proceeded to get to work on the right one. She finally got it. _Oh…_Canaan visibly shrunken then, mostly from guilt rather than embarrassment. _She's still mad about me leaving her back in Shanghai. _She really did regret doing that. After the battle on the train, she really wanted to search for Maria and Yun Yun. She really did want to see if they were okay, even though she knew from instincts that they were safe. But she soon thought about what might happen after that. What would happen if she stayed with her longer? She remembered what Alphard said during their battle on the train. _That sort of love will only hurt the ones around you._ She decided not to go looking for her. She deeply regretted that, the least she deserved was a good bye. But now that doesn't matter. Soon after that, she quickly started to long for her. Now they were back together, for better or worse. She quietly conceded, putting down her arms, and decided to let Maria do what she wanted with her. The blonde saw this. She wanted to continue her pillow-y assault, but her strength faded then. When Canaan saw that the pillow stopped its barrage, she pulled the blonde into a tight hug. _I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry._

She kept repeating that in her head over and over. How could she apologize to her in words? She kept repeating her apologies in her head, hoping her friend would get the message, as she stroked the back of the blond haired girls head.

After a couple of sobs and a moment to calm down, Maria leaned up and her eyes met the red ones.

Her frown disappeared, and quickly replaced it with a smile; she can't stay mad at Canaan for long. She could never. She also knew why she did what she did. She wiped her tears away, and re-positioned herself back to the same position they were before, with their foreheads touching.

"Welcome home, Canaan…"

Canaan closed her eyes, and reveled in the closeness between the two.

"I'm back, Maria…"

* * *

Everyone! It's the beginning of Canaan's math class! To become a Synesthete like me, do your best!

Bakabakabakabakabakabakabakabakabakabaka9999999999 999999999999999999999

Ok, I know that was a lot of needless, redundant translating. You guys probably know what baka is, you're a not dummy (BAKA) after all. But it just seemed like a 'Maria" thing she would say when she is frustrated. And I just wanted to emphasize that. I'm not going to do a lot of Japanese words in this story(from now on), like HAi, or Baka!, or Ne? Or desu, de gesso, or…Da Ze! Or- whatever! Unless it adds any value to story-telling, or narration, then I might see myself doing that. Which is completely up to speculation, so it's probably going to be used rarely. I should probably say right now, if you guys haven't noticed, that in this story, they are speaking Japanese. As for the USATSF people like Tenmaru, they are speaking in Japanese too. I'll notify the readers when they speak in a different language. The anime did that, why can't I?

OK! That was the first actual CanaanMaria moment in the story! Took 4 chapters to build it up to that. Whoops. Now, some apologies to some of the readers that, I feel, needs to be addressed.

First to Blazing CobaltX= Remember when you said that you liked the minimal angsting Maria had in chapter 1? Yeah, looks like I threw that out the window. Sorry!

Second to CanaanAlphardForever= Sorry for destroying your ship. The Canaan section of the site has a surprisingly low amount of CanaanxMaria stories. This world needs balance, and I will bring it-maybe*shrugs. But hey! I managed to attract a CanaanAlphard shipper into reading this story and liking it, that must mean I'm doing something right…right?

And writing longer chapters seems to becoming easier now. My quest for Wor(l)d domination is at hand!

And also, I've decided to expand Canaan's synesthesia power. Now she can see if feelings and emotions were fresh, or if they were frequent. I am not an expert on synesthesia, just to let you guys know.

Now…uh, nothing else for now. Oh Yeah! A thank you to the reader (Yes, You!) for reading this far. This is my first time doing romance in a story. So as always, feedback is always appreciated. Did it suck? Was it mediocre? Was it meh? If you can-I mean, if you want to-I mean, you could always…you know…type your opinion in the box down below.

D-Don't get the wrong idea! It's not like I want you to review or anything. F-Fool… (B-Baka…)

Till next time!


	5. Update

Update

Not sure you can really call this an update, but I just had to get this out.

Okay, so I just checked the followings for this little story, and saw that I've collected a few. And to my pleasant surprise, a certain someone plugged my story in theirs.

So I just want to write out a huge THANK YOU CanaanAlphardForever for being such an awesome person! Really, that means a lot. And to the people who just recently started reading this thanks to her, welcome aboard!

As to the small handful of people who were already following this story, The next chapter is about…70 percent complete, and should be ready by Wednesday. I kinda took a break from writing and reading, so please forgive me. So yeah, I'm not dead, CanaanAlphardForever is awesome, and keep a look out for chapter 5!


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

* * *

"Eh?! Really?!" Maria exclaimed out jovially in a wonderful mixture of excitement and joy.

The atmosphere of the room retained its calm and serene nature. All that was needed was a few moments of silence; just a couple of minutes to bask in their closeness.

Time spiraled around the duo, as if it was demanding the two to acknowledge it's existence. However, the two girls did not even notice how much time has passed. It was only until the alarm clock stopped it's blaring did the two snap out of their spell.

Blushes were formed, embarrassed giggles were uttered, and before they knew it, conversations were made.

"Yeah, right next door" Canaan confirmed with an affirmative along with a smile. "Room 427" She finished with a smile.

Maria's eyes enlarged as her smile brightened the room. "Ah! Amazing!" she said as she once again pounced on the silver haired girl.

"That's so convenient! Now we can easily talk. We can meet up every day. We can hang out. We can go on dates, and…so many things!" she said breathlessly as she clasped her fingers together and sighed. "It's almost like fate" she said whimsically.

When she turned to look at Canaan, she giggled and stuck her tongue out with a wink, "Just kidding!"

This evoked a laugh from the mercenary. Maria's playful nature was something she adored about her. It was one of the many qualities that make her irresistibly charming and cute.

Suddenly, her phone started to vibrate in her pocket, notifying a text message from Captain Tenmaru. She took it out to see what the captain sent her, the text read "Hello~, sorry to call suddenly, but some things were uncovered during my little investigation. Meet me in the Suzu Café to get caught up on the details ^_^"

With a sigh, she turned to Maria. "I have to go now. Something came up that needs my attention."

Apparently her statement caused Maria to remember something. "Huh?" She took a glance at the clock, showing that the time is close to crossing the boundary between morning and noon. This meant…

"... Ah! Work!" She blurted out, running to her closet in a hurry to pull out whatever clothes her hands could find. Once she found a decent, yet creased buttoned shirt and a black skirt, she then started to undress out of her sleeping attire, hoping to quickly get changed as soon as possible.

However, the panic strickened blonde was in too much of a hurry to notice her silver haired friend in the corner, who was looking in a different direction from the stripping girl in front of her. Red started to stain her cheeks from the sudden influx of emotions she was feeling, and only one of them was embarrassment. _M-maybe now is a good time to leave…_

But before she could get up to leave, a pair of hands grabbed her shoulders, and she looked up to see her friend looking down at her with serious and worried eyes. Her blush returned and brightened when she realized that her friend was slowly inching herself towards her, clad in only her undergarments. But whatever discomfort Canaan was having, Maria didn't seem to notice.

She was worried that when she leaves, she might disappear again. Even now there is still a doubt in her mind that this is all real. In her mind, there is still a possibility that this is just another realistic dream. For a second, she was having trouble trying to find the right words.

"Promise me…" she said softly; her face only a couple of inches away from the blushing girl.

Canaan swallowed down her gathered saliva, and tried to calm herself. Sure, she is used to bullets zipping across her face in all directions while in the middle of a battlefield, so why is she so…nervous?

"Y-yes?" she said, silently asking for an elaboration.

Maria finally gathered her words. "Promise me…that you will come back here when you are done!" she took a deep breath before continuing.

"Promise me that you will come by every day!" She said loudly with effort and a hint of embarrassment.

Last time, she didn't really get an answer to her request. Her words were echoed in her mind, words from two years ago in the desert. _I also one day would like to be able to shine by myself. That's why…Stay by my side forever!_ This time she will make sure she accepts her request. She will make sure she gets the answer she's looking for, even if she has to stay in this room for weeks. She knew she was already late, but priorities be damned! She knew Canaan. She would never break a promise to her. And Canaan would always be the person she trusts the most, no matter what.

This surprised Canaan. Usually Maria was soft spoken, innocent, and passive, energetic sure, but never this assertive. She finally calmed down and couldn't help herself from grinning._ She really has changed._

She then slowly cupped her blonde friend's face slowly. "I promise."

Soon, both found themselves entranced in each other's eyes. Only Canaan was the first to realize that Maria was barely clothed, and in close proximity with her. She suddenly looked away, her cursed blush returning once more.

"Y-You should probably hurry and get dressed…you're going to be late…" She stammered.

"Ah! That's right!" She then quickly got up and got dressed with as much speed her body could muster. It was practically a blur in Canaan's perspective, although understandable as she was still advertently looking away out of modesty.

Once she was done getting dressed, she ran to the door, and gave one last winking smile to her friend. "See you later!"

And then the door closed, leaving Canaan in the noiseless room. A few minutes passed by with Canaan sitting on the bed motionless, recounting the events that just took place. Then out of nowhere, she let out a mirthful giggle. She couldn't understand it, but she was in high spirits. She was relieved, relaxed, amused. She was overall in euphoria.

The silver haired mercenary let out a sigh. For the first time in a while, she was actually questioning to herself if she wanted to work for the day. _Don't want to keep him waiting._ She got up and headed out to the room, hoping to return soon.

* * *

She was surprised. Usually when she was running late, there would be a lot of scolding for her tardiness. But when she entered into the building, there was little resistance. Even the front desk lady only greeted her with a positive "good morning", and nothing else. Usually, Mino-san would be somewhere around the entrance, wanting to give her as much grief as possible for being late. Today on the other hand was different. Instead of finding him waiting by the door, she found him in the office…sleeping.

He laid there, face planted right on his desk, drool cascading down his mouth, and uttered snores that could shake the bones of anyone near. A few thoughts were flying in Maria's head at that moment; thoughts of Anger, exasperation, annoyance, and many others. But one stood out among the rest, retribution.

She looked over the desk Minoru was sleeping on, and spotted a rubber band. _That will do, _she thought while grinning to herself. She took the rubber band and outstretched it with her index finger and her thumb, and pulled back the two elastic strings, gathering as much potential energy as possible, and aimed them right between the sleeping man's eyes.

_Launching in three…two…_

* * *

*PANG

"AH, I'M SORRY!" He screamed more out of fear than pain. He looked around by reflex, mirroring the actions of a hunted deer scouting the area for potential danger, except the hunter was in the form of a smirking, blonde, antennae'd haired girl.

"Oosawa?" He asked, suddenly feeling the stinging sensation on his forehead. "Owww, did you.." he saw the rubber band she was twirling around her slender fingers. "Did you just sling that at me?!"

"No sleeping on the job, Mino-san!" she retorted in mocking tone that mimic Minoru's past scoldings.

She put her hands to her hips and pouted. "Honestly, you always badger on me and flicking me in the forehead for taking innocent little naps, saying that I should always be one hundred percent focused while at work. Now I find you going back on your word."

She crossed her arms. "What do you have to say for yourself?" She might as well switch the roles. Perhaps by reprimanding him, he might forget the fact that she is hours late.

"Uh-um… Well…" Minoru was at an obvious loss of words. He silently cursed Maria for taking all the good excuses in the past, as he was unable to make up a good one. Nor could he really tell the truth about what happened last night.

Last Night

"Mmmphh-MmmhmmMphmmm!" His screams were abruptly snuffed out by the captain's hands covering his mouth.

"Honestly, you do know that curfew is in effect right now, right? If you're going to break the law, you might as well have the common decency to let everyone else sleep…" He explained in a slightly annoyed tone, with his hands still covering the journalist's mouth.

_Not to mention you were really getting on my nerves…_

Once Tenmaru released his grip on the journalist's face, Minoru asked, while gasping, "H-how did you know *cough that I was following you?"

Tenmaru held his chin in thought, pondering an adequate answer. "Let's say... your 'determination' gave it away. Now it's my turn to ask the questions"

He leered intensely at the shaking man, "Why were you following me?"

Minoru panicked, trying to come up with a suitable excuse. None were coming to mind, as his thoughts were in disarray for some reason. Literally nothing in his mind had any acceptable lie. In fact, everything in his mind was prompting him to tell the truth, warning him of potential consequences. _Might as well_.

Minoru started to explain his position as a journalist for the Heaven's publishing papers, looking to pick up a scoop about the international relationship between Japan and the United States, and the broken camera rumor is the most convoluted, which is all that is needed for a green light by the director. Sadly, the hours after curfew are when the real juicy bits are.

"Ahh, I've heard about you somewhere. Weren't you the one who wrote that love piece about the tragic couple in Shanghai?"

Minoru grimaced at the mentioning of the event from two years ago, back in Shanghai.

"Oh…yeah…"

"Yep, when I read it, I could only conclude that the journalist behind this was really good at gathering the facts. A man who would go through dirt and grime to get the scoop" The captain said.

"R-really?" Minoru started grinning while rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Well...I mean…someone's got to-"

"I wouldn't take that as a compliment if I were you" Tenmaru interrupted suddenly, opening his closed eyes ever so slightly, his grin was replaced with a serious face.

"H-huh?" Again, Minoru was at a loss for words. Tonight was just not his night…

"Judging from your profession, I have high doubts that you didn't pick up what I've said back there, no?"

"…" taking the journalist's silence as an affirmative, he continues on.

"Well, that's a shame. As a respected officer of the intelligence division of the USATSF, It is now my duty to insure that the information that you have collected from me will remain confidential. This can include incarceration." He finished with a tone of bored professionalism.

Minoru blanched. _He can't be serious. _He decided now would be the best time to defend his case. "B-but you can't do that! The people of japan deserve to learn what the oversight powers of the States are doing! It is our sovereign right!"

"Uh actually-" Tenmaru started while pulling out what looks like a brown leather covered book, quickly skimming and turning pages. "According to Article III, section eight, subsection 5b of the United States Anti Terrorism Strike Force Charter, with the added United Nations resolution 1984 to the enumerated powers, all forms of informative media is under direct jurisdiction of the USATSF, and any information deemed unsafe to national security by an officer of the intelligence department may be censored from media sources." He promptly closed the book, his grin returning, emitting a playful yet malicious aura.

"Oopsie" He said while twirling a hand cuff around his index finger.

Minoru gulped, hoping for the best as they were dragged away. For the rest of the night, the Captain asked questions and interrogated the journalist, testing his loyalty to his job and his country. He also explained in precise details about what the consequences would be if Minoru were to release the information about the broken camera's and the bombings. Written statements were made, hours have passed, and just as the procedure were about to end…

"Hm?" the captain tilted his hat away from his sight at the window, allowing him to see the sun rising from the horizon. "Well well, lookie that! It's morning already." He stated jovially. Minoru could only groan at the lost opportunity to get some sleep.

"Looks like we are done here" Tenmaru said as he opened the door of his office, "Well then Mr. Minorikawa, I wish you a very good ni-" he smirked "morning"

* * *

He groaned at the memory from last night. For a moment, he contemplated on whether or not he should tell the girl about the events that transpired last night. He ultimately decided to not risk it, for himself and for the girl. He decided this morning that he didn't want her involved in this. The sound of foot tapping caught his attention, and he saw that she was still looking for an answer. Her expression wasn't so much of annoyance, much more so out of amusement. He sighed.

"I fought the law…"

"Huh…?"

"And the law won…"

"Wha..Hey, Mino-San! Wake up!"

Having already used up the caffeine from his 6 cups of coffee that day, he decided to take a quick nap (yeah…right). Damn the consequences. However, the face of the captain from last night still lingered in his mind, grinning at him with closed eyes, shadowing his intentions. _Creepy bastard…_

* * *

Meanwhile

"ACHOO!"

"Bless you"

The captain thanked the mercenary sitting across from him as he took out a handkerchief out of his long coat, and cleared his nose. "Well, that was out of nowhere" He glanced at Canaan "Where were we?"

The mercenary then pointed to one of the multiple circles on the map of Shibuya on the table.

"Right, do you have any questions so far?"

Captain Tenmaru just finished explaining in details about the pattern of broken cameras around the streets of Shibuya, and the possible leads on where the One Armed Woman may be. Canaan continued to inspect the paper in front of her, until something caught her eyes.

"But wait a moment, some of the trails outlined here still have som-lots of camera's intact"

Tenmaru calmly sipped his cup of latte as he scanned the map.

"Ah, that's right. There are still numerous cameras that remained untouched, and their footage showed no one-armed assailants. She's a sly one, I'll give her that. I never said this would be easy, but at least we have some idea of where she might be" he explained as he touched the red circles on the map, each having a numerated probability (done by him, of course), of where Alphard might be.

"However, I've already calculated some marked areas with adequate probabilities on where she might be. Perhaps I may be able to find out a hide out." He said, stroking his chin.

"Of course, nothing is a hundred percent; otherwise we would be chasing a brain-dead chimp." He clasped his fingers "Instead, we are trying to catch a cornered animal. And you know, they are most dangerous when cornered."

Canaan giggled at the thought of Alphard as a knuckle dragging monkey.

"Well, is there anything else?" the mercenary asked, stifling her laughter.

Tenmaru just waved her off as he took one last sip from his cup. "Mhm no, nothing mission related anyways." He stated with an easy going tone, raising one of his eyelids to inspect the person in front of him.

"Instead, I'm wondering how you are faring."

"Oh, what do you mean, captain?" Canaan asked with a curious smile.

"You just seem…different, a lot more…vibrant and relaxed" The intelligence captain said in an amused tone

"And you just seem more…colorful today"

Canaan could indeed feel the colors emanating from her; colors of pleasant emotions. She smiled, "Nothing really, I just met up with a longtime friend"

"Hm?" He gave her a smile of his own, and from the looks of it, a friendly one.

"Well, currently you do not have any further objectives for your mission, so you have plenty of time to spend with that person." He said, hinting that the briefing for anything mission related is done, and that she is free to leave.

"Are you sure captain? You don't need any help investigating?" Canaan asked. While she was grateful to Captain Tenmaru for allowing her tons of free time, she felt a little bad for letting him do all the work.

"You don't have to worry about me dear. I'm good at what I do." He turned around while leaving a hefty tip on the table. "I'll see you around then."

Canaan could only stare at the shrinking figure of Tenmaru's back. She was silently grateful to have him as a partner_._ She smirked and glanced at her watch, and decided to go back to her apartment.

* * *

Meanwhile

After about half an hour of slinging shots at his head, she decided to gather a bottle of ice cold water, and doused the former sleeping person. Soon they were talking about the assignment that they planned.

"Forget about it." Minoru prompted the camerawoman.

"Ehhh? But you were so excited about it. Wasn't it supposed to be your big scoop?" She asked him with a hint of disappointment in her eyes.

"Well now I'm not. Turns out it was nothing but a rumor after all. And what do you care? You weren't even interested in it in the first place." Minoru retorted.

The blond started to twirl the red string of yarn in her pocket. "Well, it's just that we haven't done a big assignment in a while…"

"That's because you're always asleep!" he accused with a finger. "By the way, what happened? You're a lot more…energetic today." At least that was a plus. She has shown more spirit in the past hour then she has in the past couple of years.

She smiled and gazed towards the nearest window, up at the shining sun. "I found my light yesterday…" she said whimsically, almost towards herself rather than at the journalist, as if trying to cement it as reality.

It only took a couple of seconds for Minoru to puzzle it together. It was fairly simple, at least for Minoru, since he knew the Camerawoman. She only started having trouble sleeping after the events in Shanghai. He initially thought it was some post-traumatic stress from the conflict. It wasn't a farfetched theory, since she did suffer from amnesia due to the trauma Alphard caused her in Shibuya. But he noticed that she stopped by her Canaan exhibit at least once a day. She even got caught during curfew hours a few times while trying to get to her beloved art exhibit. And she often described her "light" as a certain silver haired girl in her passed out mumbles during work. That means

…_It can't be…_

"Canaan? She's here?" Minoru asked, not totally believing it.

She giggled at how apparently obvious her answer was.

"Yep!"

"W-well, what is she doing in Japan?" Minoru asked, his paranoia starting to show in his facial features.

The Camerawoman put a finger to her chin in thought.

"Hmm, She didn't really tell me. But from what I could gather, she was doing some work here."

_I-is she serious?_ Minoru was starting to panic a little.

"Oosawa...you do realize what her job is right?" He asked hesitantly, not wanting to ruin her good mood, but also not letting her ignore the dangers of the girl.

Her pleasant smile started to dissipate once she got the hint. _Canaan is…_ Canaan is a mercenary, a bounty hunter, sometimes even a political assassin due to her connections to Natsume, who was a major for the Japanese intelligence. Which meant…

Upon seeing her distraught expression, the journalist laid a comforting hand on her shoulder and gave a friendly smile. He didn't blame her, those two were awfully close.

"Tell you what, since we no longer have an assignment, I'll give you the week off. At least until I can find a good scoop as a replacement for the broken camera thing. Ok?"

The blonde's eyes reached impossible sizes after hearing that. Never had he given her a day off, let alone a week. She squealed in excitement as she gave him a quick hug.

"Thank you, Mino-san!"

"Alright, alright. Now get going, I have things to do." He said pushing her gently off.

Maria wasted no time in heading out the door. Minoru watched at the retreating figure of the girl, grateful that she left so quickly, for now he could sleep without any distractions.

* * *

Maria was now closing in on her apartment, but her mind offered no peace. While her mood did brighten up thanks to Mino-san, his warning earlier still lingered on her mind.

Canaan was a mercenary and a damn good one too. Wherever she goes, death and destruction is expected to follow in spades. At first, she got mad at Minoru for insinuating something so malevolent about Canaan, but she knew better. She knew Canaan was no ordinary girl, she realized that back in Shanghai.

Will the same thing that happened in Shanghai happen here in Japan?

She went into the main elevator, and pressed the button for her hall.

She shook her head. _It doesn't matter, it won't. If I'm with Canaan, all will be right. All I need is Canaan…_

*DING

Once she got out of the elevator door, and proceeded down the hall towards her room, she was greeted by a surprising sight.

There, in front of the door to room 428, in front of her room was the silver haired mercenary she had grown to love dearly, practicing cat's cradle with the red string she usually used to tie her hair in a ponytail.

The mercenary noticed her coming down the hall and flashed a smile while showing her the progress she was having with the string.

"Well, what do you think?" She said as she outstretched her hands to show what she made, excited to hear the other girl's reaction.

Between her hands, formed by skillful manipulation of the red strings through dexterous fingers, was a cat cradle string figure in the shape of a heart.

From that point, all doubts and negative emotions were eased in an instant, replaced with a warm and euphoric feeling she can only get while in close proximity with Canaan.

_That's right, what have I been thinking? The answer is so obvious. All I need is Canaan, and then I'll be ok. All I need is Canaan, and I'll be safe. All I need is Canaan, and I'll be happy. That's right…all I need is Canaan._

* * *

A/N: The subtext…THE SUBTEXT! Also, fun fact: Sakuragaoka is an actual apartment in Shibuya, and Suzu café is also a café in Shibuya. So, points for authenticity? So yeah, what's your view on the story so far? What is your opinion of the USATSF? Is it interesting? What's your take on Tenmaru? How does the interactions between characters seem? Review! Review!


	7. Synesthesia 101

**Synesthesia 101**

Now would be a good time to get out a color graph

xxx

The room was dark, and the sound of whispers and excited chatters flooded the area. The layout of the room is one that mirrored a college lecture hall, with seats settled up like bleachers. The closest to the center are located on the bottom, while the rest in the back was in a higher elevation, allowing the audience to see what was in front with little obstruction. At the center of the room was a stage, with red curtains at the side, giving the learning environment a theatric vibe. At the center of the stage was a projector board, with a podium in front of it.

Suddenly, a ray of light shone down onto the stage, revealing the seal of the USATSF in front of the podium. Immediately the audience silenced themselves out of respect and a hint of fear. The emblem was circular in shape, the outline of the circle having the words "United States Anti Terrorism Department". Inside the circle, at the center was the globe, with an insignia of a broad sword on the face of the Earth, symbolizing the order that is to be maintained on the planet. A blue ribbon was wrapped around the handle of the sword, with peace etched on one side, and order on the other. On top of the globe was the logo of the American Eagle; it's gigantic wings stretching outwards, as if to encompass the globe in its grasp, and it's head looking down wards, signifying that the planet will always be under watch by the authority of the States. Beneath the globe was the American shield, symbolizing protection of all the nations that inhabits the blue planet. The seal emanated power, and invoked a sense of order, peace, security, and intimidation to anyone that would lay their eyes on it.

Stepping out of the curtains and into the light was a man dressed in a long black coat, covering his dark waistcoat over a white shirt, a black tie around his neck, matching slacks and dress shoes, and topping it off with a dark fedora resting on his head.

He calmly walked towards the podium, carrying a large briefcase in his left hand and his right hand casually in his pocket. Once he got to the podium, he looked around the room through near-closed lids, and got out a small handle out of the briefcase.

"Good morning students, and welcome to Synesthesia 101. My name is Tenmaru, captain of the Intelligence department for the United States Anti Terrorism Strike Force for Japan, and I'll be your instruction today." he said enthusiastically, actually willing to share the information to the young people around him.

"Today we are going to be delving into the viewpoint of a synesthete, but not just a regular one. Oh no, I'm talking about the people with the UA genes, who are potentially perfect soldiers, a one man army!" He said while pressing a button on the handle. The projection screen immediately came to life, showing a picture of the human brain with the five senses listed underneath. With a flick of the wrist, the handle extended into a pointer rod.

"Now, one of the biggest weapons of a synesthete is the ability to use all their senses in a combined combo, meaning that their hearing is just as potent as their sight, their smell just as powerful as their sense of touch. Because of this, unlike regular humans, all their senses are equally high, while our sense of sight triumphs over our other de-evolving senses. Already, this makes them super human level. But what is fascinating is that these senses are all combined!" he said excitedly while pointing towards the list of senses with his rod.

"Now I know, on paper this doesn't seem that interesting. But in action, it is quite superb. A touch from a computer wire can invoke the sense of sight to see where the circuitries lead to, and other neat little things. In a soundless environment, the smell can register the sound as a replacement system to the synesthete. Utilizing this feat with limitless potential, it is hard to come up with things the person cannot do.

He grinned at the audience, giving the projection board a good thwack to initiate the next slide. The board showed a bunch of colors, fourteen colored squares of them to be precise.

"Of course, that was just the basic stuff. Now we get into the nitty gritty of the subject." He said as he once again started to point at the board. "A synesthete can also feel other people's colors. Weird, I know, let me explain. The person can feel a person's innate feelings and emotions, which is also a great way of detecting danger. Say an enemy gets their sights lined up on the synesthete, and then they get a sense of excitement or accomplishment, or a quick wave of malice washes over them. The synesthete can see this as their color flashing like a strobe light, which can give them the edge and help them escape from danger."

He paused for an opportunity to let the information sink in.

"Ready? We're going to begin talking about the different colors and their corresponding emotions." He then pointed to one of the colored squares.

"Let's start with the most simple and primitive one" he said, keeping the rod pointing at the red square.

**COLORS**

"**RED:** The color of Valor. This color is the most straightforward of all the colors, since it is usually associated with the intent of protecting. When one person seeks to guard something or someone from danger, paying no mind to the consequences to him or herself, they will emit a red aura in the synesthete's eyes. Indeed, it is the most basic and primitive emotion for us humans, but it one of the most powerful driving force in the face of combat."

He then pointed to the square next to the red one.

"**BLUE: **The color of hatred. Beware this stinging aura of wrath, as blue auras always mean the intent to kill. Once a synesthete sees blue, they should know that kid gloves are off. If a person's sole purpose is to kill someone, they will emit a blue hue in the synesthete's eyes. Do not mistake this for red's purpose, as the one thing on the person's mind is to protect. They will kill if they have to, but it is only a consequence for protecting. In a battlefield, this is the most common color to see for a synesthete, and can be quite useful in identifying who is the enemy, pin pointing the enemy's position, and knowing when a person shoots, as the person usually flashes blue when they have their sights lined and finger on the trigger. As feelings like these can be easily linked and transferred to one another, blue can often be the destination of other feelings such as greed or jealousy, if the person is desperate enough."

"**GOLD:** The color of Kindness and selflessness, a true heart of gold. It is truly the rarest colors to come across in a person. This is the type of person who would cry for unintentionally breaking your feelings or trust, a person with the purest of intentions, always willing to help others wholeheartedly. However… they can be a little…fragile. In reality, these people are the types that are not fit to handle the "real" world, a world of violence, selfishness, lies, and bloodshed. And if they try to step into that world, they'll end up dead, or at best have a minor case of amnesia…let's move on"

"**GREEN:** My personal favorite color, is the color of fear and suffering. The beauty of this color is that, unlike gold, anyone can have this color. Fear is one heck of an emotion, able to linked to grief and suffering so easily. From simple nightmares, to mere intimidations, to intense torture, to the thought of losing a loved one, you will emit a green aura if you fall under these categories. It's such a versatile color. You might be asking yourself 'What's the connection between fear and suffering?' As humans, we always hope for the best, and through instincts, we fear the worse. Let me explain through hypothetical scenarios. Say there is a person who is in a position where they are in a state of constant pain and torture. There are probably a couple of thoughts rattling inside the person's mind, but most notably are thought's similar to, "am I going to die?" or even "how long before it ends?". Though they are suffering in a physical aspect, they are fearful of the thought of death or the thought of continuing to put up with the pain. Emotional pain is kind of the same thing. Let's say someone just lost a loved one, and is grieving about their absence. Inside, they fear about going through their days without that person. Whenever there is grief or suffering, fear is always related. Fear is suffering, and suffering is essentially being in fear. Now on the battlefield, it is truly the worse feeling a soldier should have. If a person is emitting a green aura, their level of focus is most likely inadequate at best, their aim will most likely be off, they will not be able to think straight, their moral will lower, and basically are easy targets in the end. This is one of the terrorist's biggest tactics on the battlefield; fear tactics and guerrilla warfare. Always aim to strike fear into your enemies, and your chance of becoming the victor will grow exponentially. "

"**GREY: **The color of the un-whole and gluttony, is a fairly simple feeling in people. It is most commonly applied in the feeling of hunger, or lack of sustenance. It can be from lack of food, water, or even vitamins if the synesthete concentrates hard enough. Nothing really noteworthy here. Let's move on."

"**WHITE:** Ahh, now here's an interesting one, the color of 'death' or 'emptiness'. Not actual death, mind you, but something considered even worse. When a person has lost all motivation to live, when they feel nothing but hollow disparity, they will emit a white color. These people have no meaning in existence, no values in life, and no goals to achieve. Ultimately, these people are dead inside. Sure, they might try to do something in their meaningless existence, let's say terrorize a city for money, but in the end, they won't give two shits about the money. They will be a ghost in real life, they only exist because they draw breathe, but nothing else. And just like green, anyone can fall victim to this. They could've been the most vivacious person in the world, but could easily have their world crumble on top of them. It makes you question what kind of world we live in. Frankly, I doubt anyone would want the actual answer."

"**BROWN:** The color of balance and control. When a person has all their thoughts collected and their emotions in check, when they hide their hesitations, when they quell their intent to kill, when they show no excitement or pride when they line their sights, they will emit a brown aura. This may prove to be troublesome, as one of the most dangerous opponents are the ones who are most calm and collected. Brown basically says 'you're on your own' as the brain can't identify any of the other brain waves for the other colors. It truly is the worst color to be facing if you are a synesthete. Brown is also the weakest when pinpointing enemy targets, as the color is usually dimmer then the other colors. Synesthete's will have a hard time predicting the enemy's movements and their pattern of attacks. They will have to rely on their basic survival skills and utilize their own senses, rather than the opposition's. As someone I knew used to say, 'the most effective soldiers are the ones who control their emotions rather than becoming slaves to them'."

_The old bastard is probably nodding his head in his grave right now._ He grinned as he thought to himself.

"**LAVENDER:** The color of euphoria. When someone is happy, excited, satisfied, or anything resembling a euphoric feeling, they will emit a lavender color. They can be happy about doing a job well done, can be relaxing under a clear blue sky, or just having fun with reading a book. This color can also be associated with the feeling of 'hope'. This color is basically just an indicator for overall 'good feelings'. "

"**TURQUOISE: **The color of confusion and cluelessness. When a person is confused at a certain event, or is just plain dumb, they will emit a turquoise color. Confused enemies are the most vulnerable, since their level of focus is severely hampered by their lack of knowledge, and can easily be caught off guard. Of course, this color can also be emitted from the intellectually impaired, as people who have a hard time grasping the concept of something, or have absolutely no clue at all, they too will emit a turquoise color."

"**ORANGE:** The color of denial. When someone is deluded, or refuses to acknowledge truth or reality, they will emit an orange color. Denial is one of the most primitive defense mechanism of the human mind, due to its close characteristics of early child development. These people will actively try to avoid painful feelings by acting as if the event never happened and often denying that anything bad ever occurred. For instance, say there's a woman cradling the body of her lover who recently died by some tragic event. The woman's mind might use denial as a defense against the despair that is sure to come. She will deny that the body before her is dead, and will act as if her lover was alive and well. She might whisper sweet nothings to the ear of the corpse, because her mind refuses to register the body as deceased. She might continue to hold the body, intertwining fingers with his dead ones, and might even engage in one way conversations."

He lets out a whimsical sigh

"The human mind comes up with such interesting ways to cope with depression, don't you think?"

He turns towards the projector, but then showed a sense of hesitation as he glanced at the next color, like he didn't what to say for that specific color. But then again…who can honestly define-

"**PINK:** The color of …love. Specifically more associated to Eros type of love, or what we commonly refer to as 'romantic feelings'. Um…Love is… difficult to explain. It is the most convoluted and mysterious emotion, and in my opinion, the most overrated. I guess if you really really like someone enough, then you go stupid for them. And that's basically what love is, stupidity for a person. What I do know is that it's often misunderstood for the more amusing counterpart; lust, **VIOLET, **which is basically using the term 'love' as an excuse to get into someone's pants. At least that part makes more sense."

"And last but not least, we have-

**BLACK**: The color of the heartless. This color is associated with thoughts of extreme sadism, when someone takes pleasure in the suffering of others both physically and mentally. This color only shows up if the goal of the person is solely to cause pain, and usually lies in psychotic mass murderers or sociopaths. No hatred can be associated, for that would be blue. No Valor can be shown, for that would be red. No fear could be present, for that would be green. No morals can be burdened, for that would be humane. Black is for the blackest of souls who just want to revel in other's misfortunes and suffering."

XXX

"So! Everyone, I hope you had as much fun learning as I had lecturing! If there are any questions that anyone wants to ask, please do so."

A timid hand rose throughout the audience.

"Um, yeah, how do you know so mu-"

Suddenly a beeping noise could be heard coming from the Captain's wristwatch.

"Whoops, looks like I have some urgent business to take care of. Later!"

Tenmaru quickly vanished from sight as the stage lights turned off, leaving the audience with more questions than actual facts and answers…

XXX

Don't really think of this as an actual chapter, as there is really no plot in here. Way too much Tenmaru in one chapter, sorry, I won't let him hog the spotlight too much as this is a Canaan story revolving around its characters. I should probably note that I am not a neural engineer, or psychologist, so these might not be 100 percent correct. Also I am aware that there are probably hundreds more emotions that I have not added, but there can only be so much colors I can use before I have to resort to shades or unpopular colors. Think of this as a color guide for the colors I might be using along the story. Also, if you could not have seen it, I added little hints used in the shows to explain why I used the colors. Like why Canaan and Mino-san was colored green while being hurt, and how Hakko was orangish when she was having "relationships" with the corpse of santana, ect. Now I know some of you might be questioning why I had to make a whoooole chapter on just colors, when I could simply just do this:

Red: Color of Valor, Protectiveness

Blue: Color of Hatred, Wrath, Intent to kill

Gold: Kindness, Selflessness, heart of gold.

Green: Color of Fear and grief

Grey: Color of gluttony, hunger, unsatisfactory feeling

White: Color of "Death", emptiness, no meaning in life

Brown: Color of balance, control, equilibrium

Lavender: Color of happiness, satisfaction, euphoria

Turquoise: Color of confusion, cluelessness

Orange: Color of delusion, denial, refusing to acknowledge reality

Pink: Color of Love, Eros, Romance

Violet: Color of Lust, often mistaken for love (pink)

Black: Color of the heartless, Sociopathic, No morals, Reveling in other's pain and misfortunes.

But I gots reasons…like…

O_0

Anyways till next time.


End file.
